Indiana RadioWatch: March 9, 2017

Emmis's Sports/WFNI (1070am, Indianapolis) will add their sports programming to 233 watt translator W298BB (107.5fm, Indianapolis) on March 30. Emmis will temporarily reduce power on their W228CX (93.5fm, Indianapolis) and continue working with the FCC to eliminate interference issues with Woof Boom's Classic Rock/WMXQ (93.5fm, Hartford City). Previously, W298BB aired a mix of ESPN Radio and NBC Sports Radio, as a simulcast of WIBC-FM-HD2 (93.1-HD2, Indianapolis).

Kevin Burris' Celebration of Life service will be Monday March 13, at Indiana Funeral Care, 8151 Allisonville Road, Indianapolis, IN. Calling will be from 11:00am until 1:00pm, with a service immediately afterward (Obituary)

Gary Havens remembers Kevin:

I met Kevin in late 1982/early 1983 when he came to Mid-America Media in Indianapolis (WIRE-AM, WXTZ-FM, and Network Indiana) as an intern from Butler University. In July of that year, we had an opening for a producer for the Doug Dahlgren show on WIRE (1430). I interviewed dozens of prospects for that job; but none impressed me as much as Kevin. He had prepared a detailed, written plan that gave me an indication of just how bright and talented he was even at that young age. Kevin was still in that job when I left Mid-America at the beginning of 1984.

Over the intervening years, we kept in touch and enjoyed sharing stories and ideas about subjects close to both of us – radio and racing.

Later, when I was V.P. of Programming for MyStar Communications in Indianapolis (WTPI, WMYS, WZPL), Kevin and I got together again. He became an on-air personality and asst. PD for WTPI; and later Program Director for WMYS. Once he left to become an air personality in Kokomo; we continued to get together regularly and solve the problems of the world.

Kevin was a great guy. He had a big heart. He had big ideas. He believed very strongly in doing things the right way and didn’t suffer fools easily. He was dependable, loyal, opinionated, funny as hell, and most of all - dedicated to his son and later to his beloved bride Karen.

I think the times I saw Kevin happiest were when he was talking about his son, and at his wedding to Karen.

I’m going to miss him very much.

Gary Havens – Carmel Indiana

After three years, Michelle Johnson will soon exit as News Director at WFYI-FM (90.1fm, Indianapolis). Ms. Johnson will soon announce her next destination.

Over the weekend, the Indianapolis radio community also lost Dwight Barnette, former Indianapolis radio sales person and former GM of the Continental Broadcasting cluster. Unfortunately, I don't have more information.

After a dozen years in television journalism, Tribune CBS affiliate/WTTV (Channel 4, Indianapolis) morning anchor Nicole Pence exits, to spend more time with her family. Ms. Pence has three children, including twein boys. Ms. Pence joined Tribune sister FOX affiliate WXIN-TV (Channel 59, Indianapolis) in June 2014 and helped start "Fox59 NewsPoint at 11." In 2015, Ms. Pence joined the "CBS4" morning program as an anchor.

Westcentral

May 2 will be the date that FCC chief administrative law judge Richard Sippel will hear arguments from the FCC and former radio station owner Mike Rice. Mr. Rice wants to get back into radio ownership. Mr. Rice operated an Alabama translator under an LMA since 2007. When Mr. Rice filed his deal to purchase the translator, the Media Bureau chose the FCC's internal legal process to make this decision. How does this relate to Indiana? Mr. Rice owned seven stations in Indiana and Missouri until 2001 (Contemporary Media), when the FCC revoked the licenses following his child molestation convictions. All of the stations went silent on October 4, 2001. The FCC alleges that Rice displayed "lack of candor" by not disclosing to the FCC that he's been operating the AM station linked to the FM translator. Rice's late psychiatrist (Dr. Wayne Stillings) told the FCC that radio is Rice’s "driving passion" and "love of his life." Dr. Stillings died in 2015.

DLC Media's C&W/WVIG (95.9fm, Seelyville) adds Purdue Basketball and Football games on "95.9 The Legend." That's in time for the Big Ten Men's basketball tournament this week.

The Tower Family Foundation and National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) awarded the Ernie Jones Memorial Civil Engineering Scholarship at the University of Evansville to junior Elyse Massey, a Civil Engineering major from Evansville. “Elyse is an extremely hard worker, dedicated to any task put before her and is sincere and honest in her dealings with the people around her,” stated Dr. James Allen, Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Evansville. “The faculty and staff believe that Elyse represents the qualities of the individual that NATE and the Tower Family Foundation wishes to honor with this award,” added Dr. Allen. Ernie Jones, PE tragically passed away in October of 2015 while inspecting a tower in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Ernie was a structural engineer who worked in the broadcast tower industry for 30 years. Mr. Jones served as president of Consolidated Engineering, Inc. and a VP of Structural Engineering at Electronics Research, Inc. in Chandler. The Ernie Jones Memorial Civil Engineering Scholarship awards a $2,500 scholarship annually to a junior or senior level civil engineering student at the University of Evansville’s College of Engineering and Computer Science.